Saddle pads are widely used underneath saddles for the comfort and safety of the horse. The saddle pad provides a protective layer between the saddle and the body of the horse that is intended to produce a cushioning effect and also eliminate irritation due to chafing movement of the saddle.
Generally, there are two types of saddles; Western and English. Conventional saddle pads for Western-type saddles tend to slip or shift under the saddle causing the very discomfort and irritation the pad is intended to prevent. Attempts to solve this problem have been met with little success. For example, some Western-type saddle pads have been provided with regions made of material having non-slip properties such as neoprene. This has proven to be counterproductive because perspiration from the horse's back is not absorbed and an undesirable build-up of moisture tends to occur, causing the pad to slip.
Corona-style Western-type saddle pads have raised borders for decorative purposes. These raised borders are typically made of rolled or quilted fabric which have no rigidity and thus offer no resistance to slipping and shifting of the pad.
The provision of raised, non-rigid borders has been proposed for English-type saddle pads. U.S. Pat. No. 3,323,287 to Hilmer describes an English-type saddle pad having resilient edges extending both upwardly and downwardly from the two faces of the main portion of the pad. When in position under the saddle, the pad's resilient edges are aligned with the edges of the saddle and are tightly gripped between the body of the horse and saddle. This creates an air space between the saddle and the main portion of the pad for ventilation purposes. U.S. Pat. No. 4,974,397 to Ricken suggests use of a quilted border roll for an English-type saddle pad to snugly hold the saddle in place.
The foregoing patents do not address the unique problem associated with Western-type saddle pads of slipping and shifting underneath the saddle. Those English-type saddle pads are designed and intended to fit snugly with the saddle so there is no freedom of movement between the pad and saddle such as is desirable in Western-type saddle pads. As a consequence, movement of the saddle causes undesirable movement of the saddle pad as well. Moreover, because the raised borders proposed in these patents for English-type saddle pads have no substantial rigidity, they would not prevent slipping or shifting if incorporated into Western-type saddle pads.
Accordingly, it is an object of this invention to provide a Western-type saddle pad that does not slip, shift or ride out from under the saddle. It is a further object to provide such a saddle pad which provides limited freedom of movement between the pad and the saddle.